Overview
- The bench of Chief Justice Shree Chandrashekhar and Justice Gautam A. Ankhad ordered identification of three alternative parcels of 90 acres each outside SGNP and Aarey, with affidavits due within two weeks.
- The judges clarified the sites need not be near the park and may be considered in areas near Mumbai, directing concrete options rather than provisional proposals.
- The matter is posted for December 3, and the high-powered committee led by Justice Dilip B. Bhosale will continue work on encroachment removal, rehabilitation plans and the SGNP boundary wall.
- Advocate General Dr. Birendra Saraf cited constraints at Marol-Maroshi, noting only 44 acres could be usable after a zonal master plan is approved and the NBW embargo from December 21, 2024 is lifted.
- The court expressed displeasure over decades of non-compliance since 1997 as it heard a residents’ plea and a contempt petition by Conservation Action Trust, and it rejected seeking Supreme Court permissions for Aarey that could prolong delays.